Articles in the Emotional Eating Category
“Lose the labels. Lose the percentages. Who are you competing with? Seriously. Set your own bar. Neither a label nor a percentage ever made anyone healthy.” – Earth Mother
Wise words, Earth Mother, wise words…
Labels Schmabels
Why do we feel the need to label ourselves? Even the process of overeating is labeled as “emotional eating.” So, on top of all the other labels life sends our way, we’re now “emotional eaters” as well – me included.
*insert deep sigh*
For the past few years (as I’ve mentioned numerous times before, all across the Web, and on this blog), I’ve eaten at least 75% raw. I didn’t think about labeling myself at that time (although I did eventually start calling myself a vegetarian). I was just trying to improve my health and just considered it as eating more whole foods so I’d have a healthier diet/lifestyle, overall.
I didn’t have a blog at that time so I wasn’t as aware of all the various labels raw foodies (and people in general) put on themselves, and others.
I didn’t consider myself “not a raw purist” – I was just a gal who was eating high raw (sometimes 100% raw for months at a time) with an ultimate goal of losing weight, improving my health and lifestyle habits, and basically finding a way that resulted in eating to live. – I just wanted to live and be healthier and happier.
And I was!
When I felt my best…
I was eating the following:
- a lot of raw veggies
- minimum fruit (mostly berries)
- some nuts
- some seeds
- salads topped with fish
- eggs
- Greek yogurt
- a little honey
Yeah, fish and eggs. I was looking and feeling sooooooooo much better when I (without guilt) included these foods in my diet.
So, what changed?
First, I labeled myself “low carb” and then I was “vegetarian” and then “mostly vegan” and then “high raw” and then “raw foodist” and then “vegan” and somewhere in the midst of all the transition, I lost the part of myself where I was eating better, feeling better, looking better, and was actually happy.
Sheesh.
How’d that happen, eh?
I’m not sure how I lost my (true) happiness along the way. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not seriously depressed or anything – I’ve just noticed a difference in how I view food and how I feel when I eat it. If I’m starving for an omelet, I usually feel guilty if I decide to eat it.
In the past, that guilt wasn’t there. Yes, I’d feel guilty about eating cake or something because I was so overweight, but I didn’t feel guilty about eating an egg or a little honey – so, imagine how crazy it is to feel guilty over eating an egg or a small portion of salmon now that I’ve lost 100+ pounds! Gasp!
Craziness.
What’s a gal to do? Hmmm….
Positive Solution
I’ve decided that even though I do live mostly a vegan/vegetarian-ish lifestyle (and have for several years), I’m going to do my very best to remove myself from the labels I’ve limited myself to.
Does this mean I’m going to run out and eat meat? No. It just means that I want to simplify my life. I want to enjoy the food I eat – even if it happens to include an omelet (made from farm fresh, organic-omega eggs) or a little honey drizzled over a treat, or some fish on top of my ginormous, raw salad.
It means that by removing the labels I’ve placed on my life, I’ll be stepping into a confident, beautiful, peaceful existence.
Aaaaahhhh, now that sounds awesome! 
What will I be eating?
- whole foods
- raw foods
- nuts
- seeds
- fruit
- veggies
- grains
- Greek yogurt
- and sometimes this will include eggs, maybe fish (???) and honey
I may even throw an occasional splurge in there for good measure. 
Seriously, raw foods have been such a huge part of my healing journey and weight loss – I’ll never give ‘em up!
There is one label I don’t mind: Healthatarian
A while back, I was chatting with my friend, Beth, about how I was getting stressed from labeling my eating habits. So, she said something like:
Michele, just quit calling yourself a vegan or vegetarian and consider yourself a “healthatarian” – genius, that girl is!
(Thanks, Beth!)
By trying to adhere to a “healthy” lifestyle, we’re merely choosing to strive to do our best. That takes a lot of the pressure off. If you miss a day of exercise or enjoy that cupcake at the office, it isn’t the end of the world. We aren’t perfect – none of us. We all have something we don’t want to give up. We all dream of chocolate or caramel or whatever. We’re human.
And I’d never tried to deceive anyone…
- I blogged about falling off the 100% raw food wagon (because of several family deaths – that emotional eating label again).
- I blogged about the side effects of falling off the 100% raw food wagon.
- I blogged about having an omelet and cake and ice cream – and even a Zero candy bar on my last birthday.
So, you can guarantee that I’m not in the deceiving business and I’ll always be upfront.
It is – and always has been – my desire to share my heart with you.
And I want you to know I’m not perfect, and that we’re on this health journey together. I may slip up and call myself a raw foodie or high-raw vegetarian from time to time but I’m going to work on just living as a healthatarian.
So… here’s my advice for food choices:
“Make the best choice most of the time, the better choice as often as possible, and enjoy the splurges when they come.” – Raw Juice Girl
I feel much better now that I’ve shared this with you. It’s over. It’s out. What a relief!
And, I’m NOT saying that you’re a bad person or anything if YOU call yourself a vegan/vegetarian/whatever – I’m just sharing that it stresses ME out to limit myself with labels.
Your Turn
Do you worry about what people think of your food choices? Have you recently limited your eating habits by labeling yourself? Do you wish you could rewind and remove that label?
Do you consider yourself to be a hardcore vegan, vegetarian, or whatever else? Do you label yourself? Tall, skinny, short, fat, etc.? Do you even think about how often you label yourself? Do you feel like it’s a bad thing? Good thing? Does labeling yourself help you live a more peace-filled, harmonious lifestyle, or (like me), do you find yourself stressed over trying to live up to certain labels or expectations?
And would you be upset to see photos of salad, topped with fish or boiled eggs on this blog?
Let’s glean from each other. Do share!!
Contest Alert
Oh, and don’t forget to enter my Tropical Traditions coconut peanut butter contest – this stuff is delicious, no matter what your food choices are!
Note: I updated that contest post to include an amended rule (the one about tweets). Thanks for understanding!
References/Credits:
Wordle (by me)
Quote (Earth Mother, In the Raw)
Just stopping by? Have you tried my coconut peanut butter honey overnight oats yet? Or maybe you’d like to try your hand at my chocolate-covered raisin hemp balls or raw tuna fish-less salad. And you simply HAVE to try my latest, simple creation: Coconut Peanut Butter Cream. YUM!
Hope you had a fantabulous holiday! I sure did.
I know a lot of you are curious about what I ate for Thanksgiving. A part of me feels proud of my choices because I didn’t eat meat and I didn’t eat dressing (aka stuffing).
No animals were harmed for my dinner.
But…
A part of me is disappointed with myself (make sense?) because my Thanksgiving dinner wasn’t 100% raw AND vegan. 
Night Before Turkey Day
On Thanksgiving Eve, my mom had leftover batter from the pineapple upside down cake (she makes hers in a cast iron skillet) and so she made cupcakes.
I wasn’t going to eat one, then I just did – it was the smallest one, though!
That was the first time I’d had any (real) cake since my birthday (in mid-August).
Choices, Choices
Aren’t we are own worst critics? Are you hard on yourself, too? Sometimes I think I’m too hard on myself. Most ALL of the time, other people think I’m too hard on myself.
I’ve been really torn about the direction my eating habits have been going and in an upcoming post, I’m going to share my feelings and plans for 2010. Since I lost my cousins (at such young ages) this year, I’ve really battled emotional eating. I’m going to address emotional eating and my food choices soon…
My Thanksgiving Dinner
I filled my plate with mostly salad: baby spinach leaves, kale, broccoli, carrots, avocado, pink sea salt, drizzle of olive oil, pecans.
Then I decided to have a couple spoonfuls of my mom’s sweet potato casserole, real mashed potatoes, baked pasta, and green bean casserole. And the cranberry sauce isn’t raw either – it’s fresh from the can.
Sounds like a lot – but it really wasn’t that much. I suppose some would say I went overboard; others would say I didn’t eat enough. I am proud that my plate is filled with mostly raw veggies. I ended up not have a vegan Thanksgiving because there’s butter in the mashed potatoes and cheese (+ butter) in the pasta. I don’t think I did that badly, though: I didn’t eat turkey, dressing, or the other stuff available.
Iced tea with stevia
Most importantly on Thanksgiving, though, I enjoyed the company. Good family and friends are hard to come by!
How did your Thanksgiving turn out? Did you get to see family and friends and have a good time? Did you eat all raw or high raw vegetarian/vegan? Did you worry about it? Did you splurge and have cooked foods and maybe even turkey? Did you go all out and work hard on mock raw or vegan options? Tell me all about it!
Just stopping by? Have you tried my coconut peanut butter honey overnight oats yet? Or maybe you’d like to try your hand at my chocolate-covered raisin hemp balls or raw tuna fish-less salad. And you simply HAVE to try my latest, simple creation: Coconut Peanut Butter Cream. YUM!
Hello! How’s your day going? Mine is fantabulous so far. Mr. Sunshine is visiting today. How very kind of him – yay! 
Anyway, a while back, Danica from www.DanicasDaily.com hosted The Great Pumpkin Giveaway. I entered. There were THREE winners – and I was one of ‘em!
My Package from Danica
I love that she sent her (nicely typed) recipe and a beautiful, kind letter. Thank you, Danica! I love my prize – and all the thought you put into it!
The pumpkin butter was put to good use right away. The family had it smeared on pancakes. I’m trying to avoid those, so I swiped a spoonful straight from the jar. *giggles*
I have to say this, though: Trader Joe’s has nothing on my mom’s homemade pumpkin butter! (But, I could be a tad bit bias.)
Turkey Day
A lot of you are wondering if I’ll eat turkey on Thanksgiving. I’ve received emails and messages and questions on social media sites.
The answer is no.
There have been times over the past few years that I’ve allowed a little fish or turkey into my diet. I’ve been at minimum 75% raw and the majority of the time, I’m 90-100% raw most every day.
But after studying meat and fish for articles I’ve written (and for personal curiosity) and coming across such heartfelt, informative articles (such as Gena’s Reconsidering Veganism at ThanksLIVING at Choosing Raw) I’ve found it very easy to reevaluate my level of Raw Foodism and have really thrown myself into focusing on raw food, my health, and am working very, very hard to learn to be at peace with others’ perception of the way I choose to eat. Gena’s article really resonated deeply within my soul and I thank her (from the bottom of my heart) for sharing that beautifully written post – and for all the effort she pours into her entire site. (Thank you, Gena!!)
Here a Turkey, There a Turkey
I thought I’d start by showing you my pet turkeys: Gobbles and Goblet.
How could I eat Gobbles or Goblet? Nope. Not happening!
What Will this Raw Vegan Eat?
Honestly? I don’t know yet! I’ve searched my heart (and raw, Vegan recipes!) and have decided that I’m simply not going to worry about it. The holidays are a time to come together with precious friends and family and laugh, talk, catch up, and just be. It’s a time to reflect on grandparents, parents, siblings, or other relatives and friends who are no longer with us – an opportunity to cherish all those memories that we hold deep in our hearts.
Thanksgiving is about forgetting about material possessions and being thankful for all those things that have nothing to do with food, things that money can’t buy – like hugs, kisses, laughter, joy, and sparkles in the eyes of those you love.
Sure, I’m thinking of making a raw pecan dessert. And maybe a raw coconut cream pie dessert. I’ll probably just have a ginormous salad with a few nuts and other yummy toppings. I might nab a bite of momma’s sweet potato casserole….
But overall, I’m pleased to just be entering this Thanksgiving with a purpose: to enjoy my family and friends and just be in the moment.
I will try to take photos and document what I eat, though – I’ll blog about it later.
If you’re super interested in a true raw, Vegan Thanksgiving menu, check out Gena’s. It RAWks! Averie’s raw, Vegan ideas are RAWkin’ too!
I’m Thankful For
- my faith
- my heritage
- two living parents who’ve been together for close to 40 years*
- a warm, cozy home
- family and friends
- the best brother in the world
- that I’ve maintained a 100+ weight loss for a few years now
- that I survived domestic violence and can be an inspiration to others, that they can too
- for blog readers who are so encouraging, inspiring, sweet, and loyal
- for another Thanksgiving to reflect on memories and cherish the new ones
- and soooooooooooooo much more!!!!
What does Thanksgiving mean to you? Will you be traveling? Or, is family and friends traveling to your house? Will you be preparing a turkey? Even if you aren’t going to eat it? Are you stressing over food, or like me, are you just feeling blessed to have special people to spend the day with?
Happy Thanksgiving!!!!
Stay safe, laugh often, and enjoy the moment!!!!
*I meant to write living, not loving – although they are!
If you’re just tuning in, be sure to check out my review of E3Live and also my thoughts on BrainOn. And a huge thank you to the folks at www.E3Live.com for sponsoring the first contest where one LUCKY reader will be receiving a prize valued at over $200!
Chocolate-Covered Katie’s Mission
This post is in honor of Chocolate-Covered Katie’s Charity Page View Drive: Operation Chocolate-Covered Kindness
Katie is doing a fantabulous job of spreading kindness. Let’s help her out!!
In honor of the chocolate theme (and y’all know how much I love chocolate!) I thought I’d share a few recipes. Only one is mine, but I think you’ll like the others I mention, too!
Chocolate-Covered Recipes
Katie has a long list of chocolate-covered recipes on her blog. You’ll want to browse through ‘em all! Not only will you come across delicious treats you can whip up for yourself and your family and/or friends, but you’ll be helping Katie raise money for charity while you’re looking!
For starters, you might enjoy perusing her Fudge Babies. Oh, yeah! If that isn’t enough to drive you chocolate bonkers, feast your eyes on All Things Oatmeal, Pancake Pandemonium, The Pudding Files, or the Most Popular. Of course, there are tons more. Enjoy!
Oh, and you might want to grab a napkin before you dig through her recipe archives – you just might drool!
Averie’s Chocolate Fudge Balls
The amazing Averie is always, always whipping up the most RAWsome Vegan desserts over at Love Veggies & Yoga. She creates the most decadent, sinful looking (yet healthy!!!) treats over there. She’s an incredible inspiration, from her years of yoga practice, to her ability to juggle day-to-day chaos with a toddler, she manages to be wife, momma, blogger, reviewer, keeps a spotless home, and even hosts contests for her readers! But back to those delicious desserts… Her latest: 3-Ingredient Dark Chocolate Fudge Balls
I haven’t tried Averie’s chocolate ball recipes yet, but I will soon.
Jocelyn’s Brownie Batter Balls
Jocelyn blogs at Jocelyn Eats Fresh. I’m sooooooooooooo proud of her because although her blog posts are often upbeat and inspiring, she’s worked very, very hard at overcoming an eating disorder. She is finding a beautiful balance of healthy foods and also allows herself to splurge sometimes on the not-so-healthy stuff so she won’t find herself feeling the need to go back to those old, harmful habits. She has an “everything in moderation” mentality and it’s working wonders for her body, mind, and soul. She’s a beautiful person, inside and out, and is losing weight the slow, right way. You’re doing a great job, Jocelyn. Keep up the great work!!!
Anyway, I knew I had to try out Jocelyn’s cool creation when I happened upon her Raw Chocolate Brownie Batter Balls. I didn’t have the exact ingredients she used, so I switched it up a little. Or, well, a lot!
And Raw Juice Girl’s version…
Chocolate-Covered Raisin Hemp Balls
This recipe made 14 chocolate balls. It probably would have made 16 or 17. Um… Oops!! *giggles*
- 1 cup almond flour
- 1 1/2 cups raisins
- 6 tablespoons Dark Chocolate Hemp Powder (www.manitobaharvest.com)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon agave (or so)
I had to add a dash more almond flour and a little water to try to get the right consistency. I should have used the food processor, I think. I used the blender instead. Hmmmm…. Or, I needed to start with more liquid.
No worries… they turned out YUMMY!!!
Manitoba Harvest Chocolate Hemp
Oh my goodness y’all… The dark chocolate hemp powder from www.manitobaharvest.com is DIVINE!!! So far, I’ve enjoyed it in a smoothie and these chocolate-covered raisin hemp balls. It’s fantabulous to get your hemp protein in via chocolate. YUM-O!!!!!
You can expect a full review on the product itself in an upcoming post.
Roll the dough into balls
Then wash your hands!
And enjoy! Yum!!!
Good, and Good For You!
And that’s it! If you love chocolate-covered raisins, you’ll LOVE these chocolate-covered raisin hemp balls. You’re getting a chocolate (and a snack) fix!
AND hemp is full of whole food nutrition:
“ALL Essential Amino Acids (Protein), Omega-3 and Omega-6 Essential Fatty Acids (EFAs), and both soluble and insoluble dietary fibre.”– www.manitobaharvest.com
You’ll also be gobbling up antioxidants, boron, calcium, vitamin C, iron… (from the raisins). And the almonds are giving you manganese, vitamin E, magnesium, tryptophan, copper, vitamin B2 (riboflavin), phosphorus…
My goodness, that little chocolate-covered raisin hemp ball packs a powerful punch. I could take a beating (or two!) from these yummy treats. Yep, I could!!!
Don’t forget about Chocolate-Covered Katie’s Charity Page View Drive: Operation Chocolate-Covered Kindness
Contest Alert!!!!
Katie (as in, Chocolate-Covered Katie I mentioned above) is having a Your-Choice Giveaway
Leslie (from Leslie Loves Veggies) is also having a contest: KALLARI Chocolate {Giveaway} 3 Winners
Win a mixed case of Chobani Greek yogurt over at The Actor’s Diet Blog.
And… don’t forget about the awesome giveaway I’m hosting. Prizes are valued at OVER $200!!!!
Latest Package for Review!
I have lots of awesome posts planned for these yummy products!!!
Visit www.NuNaturals.com to learn more about their line of sweeteners, extracts, and other health supplements.
Thank you, NuNaturals!!!
Resources:
To Share the BIG News!
A while back, I mentioned to you all that I had gone to an old-fashioned festival, and that I’d had the AMAZING opportunity to meet not only the Editor of GRIT magazine (Hank Will), but also the Editor-In-Chief of Ogden Publications, K.C. Compton. Let me just tell you, I never thought I’d have that experience. It was my first time ever meeting an editor, so to meet both of these fantabulous people just sent this country girl to Orbit!
I feel SO very honored and blessed to have experienced meeting them, and I’ll cherish the memory forever and always. The reason it took so long for me to post about it (I met them back in May of this year) is because that HUGE event of meeting them was SO very bittersweet.
It was that very weekend (while I was leaving the festival) that I received a call that forever changed my life: I found out my 28-year-old precious cousin had lost her life that very morning in a tragic car accident. This girl was the life of the party, and she was far more than just a cousin to me–she was like the little sister I never had. I loved her deeply and have missed her beyond words.
That, on top of the other the recent tragedies I had just faced, was too much–it was all overwhelming. I ended up falling off the 100% raw food wagon because the old emotional eating habits kicked in.
I do have a writing blog (Writing the Cyber Highway), but I decided to share all this on Healing with (Raw) Juices because the old-fashioned festival I attended is all about heirloom seeds and produce, eco-friendly living, and the old way of life–which is what I feel I’m all about here on this blog.
On a Lighter Note
Y’all know I’m all about inspiration, motivation, and happy, smiley thoughts, so I don’t want to leave you feeling depressed. Here’s a sneak peek of what’s coming up: I’ll share the experience of my Mom sewing my pioneer dress in the first of this 3-part series. The second post will share photos and my thoughts on meeting K.C. Compton. And the last post of this series, part three, will share photos and my feelings about meeting Hank Will.
And… a sneak peek of the dress my Mom was kind enough to make for me (I helped–cut out the pattern, that is!)
Look Mom, No Sleeves!
You’ll definitely want to stay tuned!
So… be sure to subscribe to Healing with Juices’ Feed for free updates. You can get free updates to your email as well (sign up here). You’ll also receive inspiration, juice and smoothie recipes, and juice fasting tips and encouragement to help keep you motivated toward your ultimate health–and more personal posts about stuff that’s going on in my life.
Do the best you can and can the rest! (Words of wisdom from my grandma
Someone asked me if I’d summarize what my goals were for the 30-day juice fast and reflect on my journey. So, here it is…
I’ve thought about it, and my goals for this 30-day juice fast were to:
- Cleanse and detox my body from when I fell off the 100% raw wagon.
- Enter a calmer, more peaceful state of being.
- Do some old-fashioned soul searching.
- Break my coffee habit.
And I accomplished all of those things–even though I had to break the fast a tad early due to being attacked by those nasty red wasps and getting sick from that.
While I was on this juicing journey, I also made a decision (well, I made several but this one is about my relationship with food): I’ve decided to stop being so hard on myself.
During my 100% raw “spurts”, here’s the foods I miss the most:
- organic Greek yogurt (Oikos is my favorite!)
- omelets (stuffed with veggies)
- steel cut oats (with cinnamon, raw honey, and nuts)
- steamed brussel sprouts (with coconut oil and herbs)
- steamed asparagus (drizzled with coconut oil)
- mock mashed potatoes (made from cauliflower)
- stir fry
- baked sweet potatoes
As I pondered the above foods, I realized something (an epiphany?)–all of the foods I’ve listed here are on the extreme end of what’s considered “healthy”.
I’m not craving greasy fast food here, people. I’m not wanting
donuts or cake every day. Ice cream isn’t my weakness.
Life is short, you know? So, if I wake up one morning and crave an omelet (made from free-range, farm fresh, organic eggs–from my own farm–and overflowing with yummy veggies, I’m going to eat it!
I have been high-raw for the past several years. The high-raw lifestyle has improved my health, helped me lose over 100 pounds, and is the foundation of my diet life.
Gena, over at Choosing Raw, recently answered a reader’s question about how “perfect” her eating habits are. Her post truly resonated with me.
The message I took away from her post is that while eating an omelet once in a while, or having some cooked steel cut oats is something I feel is healthy and make me feel good, it may make you cringe (whether you’re on the 100% raw side of the fence or the processed, cooked food side).
So, if what I eat seems totally unattainable to you, don’t try to eat just like me. If I can inspire you to clean up your diet (even a little!), that’s fantabulous!
Example:
Maybe, at least part of the time, you could have a big salad with fish on the side instead of your normal fish sandwich with greasy fries. So, if you feel like you can’t live without your fish sandwich and fries, just choose the healthier option I’ve listed (or one similar) at least part of the time. Sound good?
Oh, and I forgot to mention what I ate yesterday:
- small banana for breakfast
- I fasted through lunch
- For dinner, I had a yummy salad:
Yum-O!
(Note: All of the following ingredients are heirloom + organic from my own garden, except for the hemp seeds, spinach, and blueberries!!)
handful baby spinach leaves
handful heirloom lettuce
Manitoba Harvest hemp seeds
raw heirloom okra (it’s delicious, y’all!)
handful blueberries
few heirloom baby carrots
Enjoy the journey; make the better choice most of the time; and treat yourself for your dedication–you deserve it!
Don’t forget about the other contests I’ve mentioned recently! And catch up on the juicy details of my 30-day juice fast.
You’ll definitely want to stay tuned!
So… be sure to subscribe to Healing with Juices’ Feed for free updates. You can get free updates to your email as well (sign up here). You’ll also receive inspiration, juice and smoothie recipes, and juice fasting tips and encouragement to help keep you motivated toward your ultimate health–and more personal posts about stuff that’s going on in my life. 
Happy Father’s Day!
First, I want to say I’m so thankful for a great Dad!! And I’d like to wish all those great dad’s out there a very blessed, safe, and HAPPY Father’s Day!! Also, if you’re a single Mom, today’s your day too–kudos to you for being both parents!!!
And… for those of you who don’t have a Dad today, my heart aches for you, you’re in my heart and prayers!!
Details
Day 6 of this 30-day juice fast has been another fantabulous day! I’m sooooooooo excited. I love days like this when everything seems so “right”, mind, body, and soul: I’ve felt energetic, am not hungry at all, and I’ve felt so much mental clarity/sharpness today!!
Breakfast/Snack
Again, I started my day off with lemon water (recipe here) and then reached for a carrot-spinach-sprout juice. I was still craving more juice (and feeling just a tad bit tired) so I had some of the “brown” juice–which is only brown due to the beets mixing with the greens.
I then had water with organic apple cider vinegar. A little later, I had a glass of herbal tea with lemon.
Almost forgot! I had my daily tablespoon of E3 Live (straight up).
Juice Fasting on a Holiday
This is where sacrifice comes in. It isn’t always easy to fast or juice fast right on through holidays or special occasions. July 4th is also coming up–I know I’ll be juice fasting through that event as well. So, while my family enjoyed this…
Father’s Day Meal
(Salmon cake, cooked (mixed) greens, corn on the cob with sea salt)
(The greens: turnip greens, heirloom rainbow chard, heirloom beet greens)
Dessert
(Mandarin orange cake with crushed pineapple frosting)
My Lunch
(Of course, I’ve had the above meal–and dessert– before, so I know how delicious it is. I kept to my juice fasting regimen and enjoyed a green juice with Amazing Grass Wheat Grass.)
Yum-O!
Amazing Grass
Let me just say, I know why the company named themselves: Amazing Grass–this Wheat Grass of theirs is truly AMAZING! I loooooooooooove how it makes me feel. I definitely (highly!) recommend it. I love the packets because you could carry them in your purse (or pocket for those who don’t carry purses, and for the guys) and pop it in water, a smoothie, or juice wherever you are.
Snack
No snack juice today–the Wheat Grass packet in my green juice is really keeping me happy. I’ve had more herbal tea and water (of course).
Dinner
For dinner, I’m planning either a brown or a green juice. Haven’t decided yet. I love them both! Decisions, decisions. I’ll update when I decide.
Is it the Juice Fast???
So far today, TWO people have told me I look SIXTEEN! Is it the juice fast?
Just tuning in? Catch up:
Day 1 of a 30-Day Juice Fast and Juicer Mishaps
Day 2 of a 30-Day Juice Fast–and AMAZING GRASS!!
Day 4 + Wheat Grass Galore + a Juicer!!
Until tomorrow… happy juicing!
Upcoming Contests Featuring these Fabulous Companies
- 2 books by Nomi Shannon, The Raw Gourmet (These two books have GORGEOUS photos and the recipes are amazing!
- 2 Food Matters DVDs (Haven’t had a chance to watch this one yet, but do check out their site–they have a RAWsome message to share!!)
- Detox 4 Women by Natalia Rose (I read this book last night and it’s awesome; it really helps you understand water retention, etc!)
- Living Tree Community (Raw almond butter and organic coconut mango persimmon butter!)
- Oh Nuts! (raw macadamia nuts and pecans) <— These are seriously delicious nuts–and they’re JUMBO sized!
- E3Live (Green-tasting (which I don’t mind!), but I REALLY notice that it’s making me feel better. It was definitely put to the test through my recent stressful events!)
- and MORE!
You’ll definitely want to stay tuned!
So… be sure to subscribe to Healing with Juices’ Feed for free updates. You can get free updates to your email as well (sign up here). You’ll also receive inspiration, juice and smoothie recipes, and juice fasting tips and encouragement to help keep you motivated toward your ultimate health–and more personal posts about stuff that’s going on in my life. 
Is this your first time visiting? Subscribe to Healing with Juices’ Feed or via e-mail (sign up here). You’ll be notified to new contests and receive juice fasting tips and recipes, inspiration, and more!
Raw Reality
More and more as I reflect on my raw reality , I realize that for a while now my body has been crying out for a juice fast. Life can be so loud sometimes that we don’t hear the faint calls our body makes. Often, we don’t hear those calls until they’re so loud that our health is in jeopardy. Thankfully, I’ve learned to listen to my body and am willing to jump on the juicing wagon when my body needs me to.
Seeking Serenity
Some of you may think that a juice fast (especially a longer one) would be torturous. In ways, I suppose that could be true. I mean, it isn’t like you can gobble up chocolate cake if you’re at a party like everyone else. Instead, you’d either have to sip water or wag along your raw juice. It isn’t as bad as it sounds–I’ve been there.
Juice fasting definitely has it’s pros and cons. I tend to lean toward the positive aspect of a juicing journey. One thing that always astounds me is the sense of serenity I achieve on longer juice fasts. It’s such a blessing to zone into yourself spiritually and reach that still place that lays dormant inside, just waiting to be resurrected and enjoyed.
Signs and Signals
It seems like so many articles and blog posts–and even conversations–I’ve come across lately have been about green juices and smoothies. Lo and behold, I happened to stop by Choosing Raw today and Gena had answered one of her readers’ questions: Question of the Week: To Blend or To Juice?
There are times that your body–and the universe–screams at you to do something. I know this is one of those times. I’ve been craving a long juice fast for a while now. I’m listening. And, I’m starting that long juice fast. I know I need it–body, mind, and soul.
Stay tuned….
What about you? Do you hear the call? Would you answer it if you did? Have you ever juice fasted? How long was your longest juice fast? Would you do it again? Why or why not? Jump right on in the comments and tell us all about it!
Contest Alert!
Contest Alert 1: June, over at An Apple A Day, is hosting a contest for Once Again omega-3 peanut butter. June says: “12 winners will be selected on June 21st, 2009!”
Contest Alert 2: Don’t forget to enter the Navitas Naturals contest! You have until Monday, June 15th, at 9 p.m. (Central Time) to get your SIX entries in!
Coming Soon
- more contests and reviews
- photos and details about a pioneer festival I recently attended (including getting to meet an Editor and an Editor-In-Chief) Eeek!
- and updates from the Amish farm
Photo Credit: Grantsviews
Just like that little lady bug climbing the flower petal, I’m climbing my way back onto the 100% raw wagon….
I recently shared that I fell off the wagon. Then I confessed about my not-so-raw moments. Then the side effects hit me like those not-so-great decisions can.
What side effects, you ask?
How about:
- fatigue
- headaches
- probably because I’m not sleeping well
- guilt
- cravings (I wasn’t craving anything when I was 100% raw!!)
I’ve been thinking….
Then came the questions.
- Do I really want to be 100% raw for the rest of my life? (I am already high-raw and have been for the past few years. Yet, I feel compelled to be 100% raw. Oy, the decisions!)
- Why did I fall off the wagon in the first place? (I’ve been through a LOT of stressful events in my life; why was this time different?)
- How long will it take me to climb back on the wagon? (I’m not going to rush myself; 3 family deaths is tragic; I’m just going to go with the flow.)
Future rawness
So, where will this raw path lead me? I’ll always, always stay on the raw path. I have an endless passion for raw foods and their health benefits. I know I’ll eat raw, drink raw juices and smoothies, and write and blog about it for as long as I’m physically able to. What excites me, is that I have the awesome (ahem: RAWsome) opportunity to share my journey with you, my readers. That is an honor–and it isn’t something I take lightly!
Raw inspiration!
I’m thrilled that my colleague and talented writing friend, Jeanne Grunert, wrote Raw Comfort Foods for Emotional Eaters! She also wrote another very helpful article regarding food and detoxing: Raw Food Detoxification: Shedding Unwanted Thoughts. Thanks to Jeanne for sharing inspiration! It’s especially helpful to me right now.
What about you? Are you struggling with food? Did you fall off the 100% raw wagon–or any wagon? Spill the beans; I did!
Coming Soon
- more contests and reviews
- photos and details about a pioneer festival I recently attended (including getting to meet an Editor and an Editor-In-Chief) Eeek!
- and updates from the Amish farm
So…. be sure to subscribe to Healing with Juices’ Feed for free updates. You can get free updates to your email as well (sign up here). You’ll also receive inspiration, juice and smoothie recipes, and juice fasting tips and encouragement to help keep you motivated toward your ultimate health–and more personal posts about stuff that’s going on in my life.
Photo Credit: aussiegall
